Full Circle
by Larxenethefirefly
Summary: They find each other in the middle of chaos, and decided right then and there that they'd tear down the sky before they lost each other again.


My Eleven muse seems to be very active lately. I think once I gave him the spotlight, he decided he liked it and wanted to stay in it.

This was written for isilienelenihin, who got married last Friday. It's my little gift to her, so if you want to, drop her a message of congratulations :D

Here's hoping you and your husband get your own forever, Izzy!

* * *

They find each other in the middle of chaos.

Full circle, he thinks, as he grabs her hand. She gives him a manic smile, and knows the word before he can even say it:

"Run."

* * *

"_Doctor? What's going on?"_

"_Something's happening, Pond. The timelines… they're unraveling. Something happened that shouldn't."_

"_What does that mean?"_

"_It means I'm going to stop it. Rory, Amy, stay close, and listen to every word I say; I don't know what's going to be on the other side of those doors, and I don't want to risk you getting caught in the temporal distortions."_

* * *

It's like old times; racing toward danger, toppling regimes, laughing their way across the stars, but it's new all at once. She's older, less innocent, with a steady hand and less mercy. He's darker, more shattered- has less of himself to hold onto these days, but neither care. Hand in hand they run, with her gun in its holster, his sonic in his jacket. There's the faintest scent of gunpowder in her hair, and his hands are covered in ashes, but they each see each other as they were the first time, the last time, and they don't care.

He's here to prevent an assassination, to save the life of a man whose granddaughter will one day be the queen and savior of these war-torn people, and she's here for the adventure; it's a happy coincidence, a chance meeting that only fate could have designed, a promise of redemption and reconciliation. That can come later, because for now, the Doctor is doing what he does best, and that is saving lives.

"You ready, Rose Tyler?"

She flashes him a grin, checks the power of her gun. "Born ready."

They waltz in as if they own the place, and it feels just as good as old times, too- better.

* * *

"_What happened here, Doctor?"_

"_It's not what happened, it's what's supposed to happen. Here, in this very spot, the King of Yunthrilicx gives his inauguration speech, swears to uphold the duties of office, and then goes to his very first meetings with his advisers. After that he goes to the King's Chapel, where he spends one night and one day praying for the support and wisdom of the gods, so that he may bring peace and prosperity to his world. Two days later he chooses a bride, and they have a son a year later, who in turn has Queen Vileen. She ushers in a ten-thousand year Golden Age for the planet. However, something went wrong. Now, the timelines are saying the King dies before his night and day of solitude, and history is unweaving. We need to stop it."_

"_How are we supposed to do that?"_

"_I don't know. All that matters is that we do."_

* * *

It's the two of them against eight of the enemy, but she is worth ten of them and he another five. The newly-crowned King and his advisers are crouched on the floor, hands behind their head and their antenna flashing madly; Rose admires the cacophony of colors for all of one second before she pulls out her gun and fires. The first guard is down before he can fire a shot, and the Doctor uses his sonic to disrupt their guns long enough for Rose to overpower them. They move effortlessly, Rose following the path his arm takes as he waves the sonic about, firing calmly where he aims. The overturned table that was near the door provides adequate shelter, and when the last enemy is down they beam at each other before helping the King and advisers up.

"Enjoy your reign, Majesty," he says as the King thanks them profusely, antenna a bright lime green for gratitude. "Believe me when I say that you will be remembered for eons to come."

He still has to go find Amy and Rory- they had stayed behind to help the citizens escape from the sudden attack on the City, leading them through the tunnels that led to the outskirts of the surrounding countryside to a safe house in the woods- but right now her hair is shining in the sunlight and their hands are still entwined, and he can't help but want to reclaim lost time.

"Was it worth it, in the end?" He asks. He wants to ask if they made the right decision, if he is forgiven for leaving her there, but is scared of her answer. She smiles and knows.

"Never regretted a moment of it," She says, and in her voice he hears pain, but that's a story for a later time.

* * *

"_Rory, head's up! Arrow coming your way!"_

"_Doctor, how are we supposed to get to the King? The soldiers are everywhere!"_

"_You lead the people to safety, Pond. You have the map; just follow it."_

"_I thought you said we needed to stay close to you!"_

"_Time is still in a shambles, Rory. What matters now is getting these people out of the line of fire, and hope that no one important has already died. You understand me, Ponds? Their lives depend on _you._"_

"_But what about you…?"_

"_Me? Oh, I'll be fine. Know this city like the back of my hand; well, I say hand, I mean my old hand, which I don't exactly remember anymore, but that's beside the point. The point is that I need to get there, and one target is harder to hit, especially since I will be moving. Now, Ponds, remember: people, tunnels, map, safety. Understood?"_

"_Yes. Be careful."_

"_Careful is my middle name!... Except for that time on Cal Eight, but that wasn't my fault, and I'm going to leave now before you question me about it. Geronimo!"_

* * *

The City is quiet, the enemies imprisoned, and the sun is setting on the horizon. She leans her head on his shoulder, idly tracing patterns on his palm, not paying attention to anything in particular. He inhales, smiling softly, the scent and feel and texture of her reality better than he remembered. It's been long, too long, since he held her last, and he'll tear down the sky before he sees her leave again. If the way she keeps glancing at him, as if to make certain he's real, is any indication, he suspects that she would do the same. After all she never took no for an answer, and he stopped believing in impossible long ago.

"How long are you going to stay with me?" he asks, as the sun sets her hair on fire and she is bathed in its last farewell. She picks up his hand and squeezes, the pressure of it grounding him, reassuring him.

"Forever," she responds.

He returns the pressure of her hand on his, ducking his head and pressing his lips to hers. It is a chaste kiss, nothing like the passionate and desperate claim that was bestowed upon his double, but equally possessive and promising. She replies softly, her free hand tracing the angles of his face, drifting along the line of his neck, fiddling with his bowtie. He smiles as he pulls back, her gold-tinted eyes glowing in the twilight and her cheeks flushed from the cool wind and dropping temperature.

"If it's my first chance to say it," he murmurs, "Rose Tyler, I love you."

"I always knew," She whispers in reply.

* * *

"_Drop your weapon!"_

"_It's nothing but a silly little torch, see? Shines green, but that's about it. Bought it for my girlfriend last market day, but we broke up shortly after, so I never gave it to her. She ended up taking my dog as well as my bank account, and came back for the toaster for good measure."_

"_I said drop it!"_

"_What, you think I'm going to overpower you and make my way to the King's advisement meeting and apprehend the group of men sent to kill him with this little thing? Pff, as if._

"… _why are you looking at me like that?"_

"_Hux, tie him up."_

"_Now, hold on just a minute…Oi! Watch where you're shooting that thing!... what? How…"_

"_It's just a stun gun. That the gratitude I get for saving your life?"_

"_You.. what… how did you…"_

"_You gonna sit there talking or are we gonna fix this?"_

"…_Rose Tyler."_

"_Run!"_

* * *

They find Amy and Rory the next day, and help bring the citizens back to their homes in time for the King to return from his prayers. The City rejoices, and with the timeline once again stable, he leads all three of them back to the TARDIS. He can't quite erase the giddy grin on his face when he sees Rose enter the TARDIS again, and decides he doesn't want to.

"Welcome home," he tells her, and she laughs as she falls into his arms, clutching him tight.

Rory leads Amy away, but he catches the red head's eyes; later, he promises with an incline of his head, and though she is bursting with questions she allows herself to be led away by her husband.

Rose spins around the console. "Oh, I missed you, girl," she breathes, and the TARDIS sings Her welcome.

There will be time for questions and answers, forgiveness and redemption, but for now his precious girl is here, with him, once more.

"So, Rose Tyler, what'll it be?" he grins at her, hands poised above the console.

Her voice fills the room and he takes it in, lodging it in the cracks of his hearts, and slowly begins to heal.

"Anytime, anywhere," she says, taking his hand in her own. "So long as it is with you."

Full circle, he thinks again, looking at her new/old face. They have so much to relearn about each other, so much to experience and explore. It's something he's looking forward to.

"Fantastic," he replies, and together they shine.


End file.
